First impressions: The beat goes on in 'Patapon 2'

If players listen closely, they will hear one of the PlayStation Portable's quirkiest franchises back on the march.

Patapon, the unusual rhythm/strategy game, has quietly become one of the handheld's best series, mixing infectious beats and surprising depth. The rhythm doesn't seem to grow old with the release of Patapon 2, based on my 5-6 hours guiding the tribe's journey to Earthend.

For those new to the franchise, players assume the role of the Patapons' god, building up their armies and leading them to a fabled promised land using various drum beats.

Each face button corresponds to a different drum, and combining properly timed beats makes the Patapons march, attack or defend. Keep the beats going and the Patapons enter a fever state, during which their attacks and defenses increase. Some rhythms also perform special abilities, such as calling for rain. During each battle, the Patapon warriors -- ranging from ax-wielding defenders to archers -- collect items used to birth new fighters or upgrade armies.

It appears Patapon 2 has made subtle tweaks compared to its predecessor. New Patapons have been added, including flying bird riders and mech warriors. The most important inclusion is the Patapon Hero. The Hero is stronger, delivering lethal strikes when in fever mode. Also, instead of dying, the Hero is knocked out for a few seconds before returning.

Bolstering forces is handled more elegantly with the use of an evolutionary tree. Moving up the branches creates unique Patapon with special abilties and weaknesses. For example, some may be stronger but more susceptible to ice attacks. Players can also level up Patapon to shore up weak spots. As players move up the tree, they will unlock different varieties of warriors to use in battle.

Patapon 2 also introduces multiplayer, but it's ad-hoc only, meaning players can only connect with nearby PSPs as opposed to an online connection. Basically, it's another avenue for players to collect unique items. Too bad they didn't offer the capability to take your tribe into battle against another player's army.

Fortunately, the single-player experience has been worthwhile so far. It's amazing how a game with such simple controls can also incorporate high levels of depth and strategy. At each battle, players have to strategically determine how to build their army, which forces to bring to each encounter, and how to properly mix attack and defend rhythms.

Players must also decide how best to bestow powerful weapons and armor to their Patapons. Even weather plays a major factor, as strong winds hinder or help archers, while rain dulls the Patapons' scent for potential prey.

One element that may deter players is the need to repeat levels. If a player's army isn't strong enough, they must return to earlier levels to collect food and items to beef up their tribe. The game attempts to soothe this process by offering different rewards each time, but it can become tedious.

Patapon 2 also marks the first PSP game sold exclusively as a download for $19.99. The process took roughly 10-15 minutes and was pretty smooth overall, but be sure to have a memory stick with the necessary space.

So far, Patapon 2 has been as enjoyable and addictive as the original, and I plan to continue my adventures. Stay tuned for additional updates as I progress further.

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About Mike Snider

Mike Snider began covering the video game industry during the Super Nintendo-Sega Genesis clash in 1992. An original pinball wizard, he eventually was seduced by Robotron: 2084 and Tempest. These days he is a fan of action/shooters and lives out his Keith Moon fantasies playing a mean drum kit on music games. More about Mike.

About Brett Molina

Brett Molina has been writing about video games for USA TODAY since 2005. He is well-versed in Madden NFL, the fighting genre and first-person shooters. The first video game he played was Asteroids at a local arcade. He has been hooked ever since. More about Brett.